The short answer

Start with the searches a ready customer would use, group them by one clear intent, and send each group to a matching offer page. Use negative keywords to block meanings you don't serve. Then review the actual search terms regularly, because your keyword list is a starting hypothesis, not a finished map.

Build keywords from customer language

List your main offers, locations, problems solved, and buying modifiers. A mobile notary might begin with phrases around “mobile notary near me,” “notary comes to home,” and specific document services she legally and competently provides.

Separate different intentions. “Become a notary” is training intent. “Free notary form” is resource intent. “Mobile notary tonight” is service intent. Putting all three in one ad group makes it hard to write a truthful, specific ad.

Google's Keyword Planner guide says the tool can suggest related keywords and estimate searches and costs. Use those estimates for planning, not as promises. Actual results also depend on bids, budget, quality, location, competition, and customer behavior.

Write negatives by meaning

Negative keywords prevent ads from showing for unwanted searches. Common starting themes include:

• Jobs, salary, career, or training when you sell a customer service.
• Free, template, DIY, or definition when you need buyers.
• Cities or regions you don't serve.
• Products or customer types you explicitly don't handle.
• Research terms revealed by the search terms report.

Don't paste a giant generic negative list into the account. A wedding photographer who blocks “free” might accidentally exclude a valuable search for “free consultation wedding photographer.” Read every negative in the context of the actual business.

Google's negative-keyword guide explains that negative match behavior differs from positive keyword matching and may require separate singular, plural, or synonym exclusions. Check the current rules before using broad lists across campaigns.

Review real searches on a schedule

Open the search terms report several times during a new campaign. Google's report guidance shows how the report reveals searches that triggered ads and how match types affected traffic.

For each term, decide:

1. Is this person plausibly looking for what I sell?
2. Does the ad set the right expectation?
3. Does the landing page finish the same conversation?
4. Should the term become a deliberate keyword, a negative, or simply remain observed?

Change one theme at a time and keep a log. That way, a well-meant cleanup doesn't quietly block the best leads.

Sources and further reading

• Google Ads: Use Keyword Planner
• Google Ads: About negative keywords
• Google Ads: About the search terms report

A free next step

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Related Questions

• Google Ads vs. Facebook Ads: which is a better fit for my business?
• How much should a beginner budget for paid ads per day and per month?
• How do Google Ads broad, phrase, and exact match types change who sees my ads?
• How do I know whether ads are profitable? Understanding CPC, CPA, ROAS, and conversion tracking

Related WAHMN resource

If you want a guided process for planning and managing paid campaigns, this course expands the work beyond this single question. See Paid Advertising Business.